Wild Blueberry Lemon Cream Cheese Pound Cake

By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by the Wild Blueberry Association of North America and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

I told you this would be a contest-filled week. This is my second entry for a contest sponsored by the Recipe ReDux and Wild Blueberry Association of North America. The other day I shared a healthy protein packed breakfast recipe, so now it’s time for dessert. I’m a big proponent of “all things in moderation”, so yes, that means save some room for dessert!

I actually don’t think desserts are half bad, as long as you keep an eye on how much you eat, AND you use healthy ingredients in your recipe. That’s why I was so excited to develop a dessert recipe using wild blueberries. They are one of the healthiest little fruits you can eat.

Tiny, intensely blue, wild blueberries are actually more nutritious than the larger, lighter colored, cultivated blueberries that you commonly find in the produce department at the grocery store. Their deep color comes from anthocyanin, a powerful antioxidant that has anti-inflammatory properties, which may help prevent many chronic diseases. In fact, research shows that wild blueberries may be beneficial for the brain, heart and eyes, and they may help prevent urinary tract infections, diabetes, and cancer. That’s a lot of healthy!

Wild Blueberries are off the charts in terms of antioxidants!

Wild blueberries also have a more intense blueberry flavor than cultivated blueberries. Because they’re frozen at harvest, they retain their flavor, as well as their antioxidant power longer. I also love these little berries because they have less water, which means they freeze better and they give you much better results in baking, as evidenced in this beautiful (and delicious, if I do say so myself) pound cake.

Wild blueberries are the blueberriest!

Here’s another fun fact about wild blueberries – they are one of North America’s native berries that are never planted, and they’re harvested commercially only in fields in Maine, eastern Canada and Quebec. They have NEVER been modified or meddled with to make them larger or easier to ship. I really like that.

If you like the blueberries you find in your produce department, I think you’ll love wild blueberries – look for them in the frozen fruit section of your grocery store.

Using a stand mixer with a paddle, beat butter, cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed for about 3 minutes, or until fluffy. Reduce speed to low and slowly add egg mixture until blended. Add flour mixture in 3 additions, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed.